BJP national secretary Suresh Pujari on Tuesday said the Odisha Government is fully responsible if its Chhattisgarh counterpart has constructed dams and barrages over the Mahanadi and its branch rivers.
A 2,270-metre barage over the Kelo river connecting Mahanadi at Tilaga of Kanaktura gram panchayat under Jharsuguda district’s lakhanpur block had been constructed by Chhatisgarh Government from 2007 till 2009. The barrage with intake capacity of 223 cubic meter water reserves all water of Kelo and doesn’t release a drop water to Mahanadi. As a consequence, as many as seven lift irrigation points have been out of order under lakhanpur block.
The Chhattisgarh Government is said to have constructed the dam in complete violation of Inter State Water Dispute Ordnance 1956. A question in this regard has already been raised in the State Assembly, said Brajrajnagar MlA Radharani Panda.
The Chhatisgarh Government has constructed number of dams unilaterally over all branch rivers of Mahanadi. This will cause scarcity of water in future and affect Hirakud reservoir, added Panda.
Pujari said other States are taking advantage of inefficient and weak administration of the Odisha Government. He, however, advised the State Government to bring detail facts of losses to the notice of the Centre.
On the other hand, Government Deputy Chief Whip and Redhakhole MlA Rohit Pujari said the BJP is interested to cause losses to Odisha Govt as it has formed Government at the Centre and Chhatisgarh as well.
“The Central Water Commissioner (CWC), which deal with these issues, is under direct control of the Union Government. It (CWC) has kept the Odisha Government in dark about dam constructions. A large scale revolution cannot be ruled out in future,” said Pujari.